HEINEKEN has updated its Brew a Better World sustainability strategy, refining the focus of its targets and outlining new priorities for the coming years. The revisions build on the company’s progress since 2021 and form part of its broader EverGreen 2030 plan.
The brewer reports several developments over the past five years, including an expansion of zero-alcohol options to markets representing 91% of its business by volume, reaching its target of 30% women in senior management ahead of schedule, a 34% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 emissions from 2022 levels, and achieving full water balance at 15 sites located in water-stressed regions.
The updated framework reduces the overall number of goals by one-third to concentrate on areas where HEINEKEN believes it can have the most measurable impact. The company will continue to organise its work around three pillars — Responsible, Social, and Environmental — while adding Fundamentals, a set of responsible business practices applied across all areas. A new unifying message, “Together we can,” has also been introduced to reflect the strategy’s emphasis on collaboration.
The revised strategy includes several new or strengthened aims:
- Low- and no-alcohol products: Increasing the growth of low- and no-alcohol volumes to broaden consumer choice.
- Heineken® 0.0 visibility: Expanding the global presence of Heineken® 0.0 through sponsorship platforms.
- Community impact: Setting an outcome-based target for supporting farmers, hospitality workers and local communities, with a focus on water access, economic opportunity and social cohesion.
The company’s carbon and circularity objectives remain unchanged. However, its water-efficiency goal has been tightened, building on progress from its Water Acceleration Programme.
Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Joanna Price said the update reflects the company’s effort to align its sustainability actions with areas of highest impact.
“We have been integrating sustainability into our operations over the past five years, and this update outlines where we intend to focus next. It reflects the work done so far and the areas we view as priorities as we move forward,” Price said.
